SELLING CLOTHING wholesale in Barbados is not common and store owners are not yet taking advantage of the concept, which is being promoted by entrepreneur Ron Straker.
The idea of opening a wholesale clothing store in Barbados came to Straker over two years ago after he went to a prominent store in Bridgetown to purchase gifts for friends and found that the prices were “too high”.
Straker now operates Hollywood Imports, where he sells female clothing, shoes, handbags, underwear, colognes and other items.
The chief executive officer told BARBADOS BUSINESS AUTHORITY that he started the store to sell wholesale to local business operators and individuals who were looking to start their own clothing companies.
However, the wholesale concept has not taken off here and he is wondering why.
Straker explained that he was able to source the items directly from Hollywood. He said the idea was to help local retailers cut back on travel expenses and buy at prices that would allow them to sell products a lot cheaper.
“I thought it was best for me after living in Los Angeles for so long to go directly to factories and get the stuff at a very low cost, put it in a container, bring it here, pay my duties and taxes and I can turn around and sell a nice suit that you would normally see in a boutique for $140. My suggested retail is about $70 so for wholesale someone would buy it from me for about $40. That is a deal. That would give the consumer a chance to buy nice affordable clothing and keep some money in their pocket,” he explained.
However, while the reviews have been good from the customers, Straker said retailers here still did not seem to want to take advantage of the opportunity and he was now forced to start selling some of the items as retail.
“I don’t want to go retail full-time; I’d rather stick to my original idea where the retailers come and buy from me wholesale and take it out there and make a living. I want to stick to that but if I don’t get that volume of people, then I have to go retail, which is what I may have to do eventually,” said Straker.
Word-of-mouth
He admitted that he was currently not making much of a profit since he was not getting the volume of customers that the model was designed for. About 90 per cent of his customers came through word-of-mouth.
“The people who are taking advantage of the wholesale are just a handful. But then there are other people who would come and buy one or two items,” he said.
He said it was not a matter of people not having enough money to start the business, since they could visit the various agencies across the island for loans and grants in order to get started.
“You drive through some neighbourhoods and you see young people sitting under a tree; they can get out and go do something. Get some items and start selling them. You don’t even have to open a store in the town where the rents are high; you can operate from home,” he suggested.
Straker currently has one store assistant. He started operating from his Christ Church home, but a year and a half ago he moved to his present Lower Bay Street, St Michael location (beside the Boat Yard).
Besides running out of space to store the items, Straker said his biggest challenge was getting retailers and young people interested in selling to take advantage of the opportunity.
Despite this, however, the businessman said he was currently thinking about opening another location. He said he was also considering the introduction of other items by summer this year.
“We are looking to expand. One of the areas we are looking to expand into is men’s clothing. I am getting a lot of requests for men’s things now. I am also considering toiletries and beauty supplies,” said Straker.
“With times as hard as it is today, people are hustling and this is where I really came in. The opportunity is here,” he said. “Some people talk about they can’t find a job but this is a great opportunity. That is the whole idea; you buy a few dozen items and go out and sell them at a decent price and people get used to you and you start building a clientele. This is not just for the small retailer down town but for someone who is trying to start a business and make some money. That is the whole idea.”
Straker left Barbados in the early 1970s and went to live the United States, where he was involved in the fashion industry and also did some modelling.
“I think Barbados is up to speed when it comes to the fashion industry. The only problem I find is that Barbadians are very hesitant to try new things immediately. Barbadians are afraid to try new things. They don’t want to be the first. And I try not to bring too many of one stuff in because you don’t want to walk down the street and see many people in the same thing.
“That is why I have so many things,” commented Straker.
